Manchester detective DCI Stone and his team are faced with 10 complex, morally challenging cases in this collection of hard-hitting radio dramas. As series 5 opens, Stone is still reeling from the mishandled shooting of Callum Gartside, a gunman who had murdered his own family. With his personal life in tatters, he must find the strength to hold it together and do his job.

Based on Nigel Fairs' 'murder mystery serial' that has been running for over 21 years (new episodes performed every month in country houses, steam trains, jailhouses, castles and restaurants throughout the UK), Shilling & Sixpence Investigate takes place in a sometimes quirky, sometimes dark world where nobody is quite whom they seem.

5 out of 5 stars

More please!

By
Amazon Customer
on
28-11-18

The Havana Quartet

Four Full-Cast Crime Dramatisations

By:
Leonardo Padura

Narrated by:
Adjoa Andoh,
Ben Crowe,
Lanre Malaolu,
and others

Length: 3 hrs and 47 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
4

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Leonardo Padura's award-winning Cuban detective series featuring Lieutenant Mario Conde. Havana Blue: it's New Year's Day 1989, and Lieutenant Mario Conde wakes up with another terrible hangover and a case which is close to home. Havana Gold: Lieutenant Conde goes on a trip through his childhood Havana haunts when a young female schoolteacher at his old school is murdered. Havana Red: Conde's fondly held prejudices are tested by this case involving a man found strangled in Havana Woods wearing a beautiful red dress.

That Was Then: Series 1 and 2

A BBC Radio 4 Thriller

By:
Jonathan Myerson

Narrated by:
full cast,
Rosie Cavaliero

Length: 3 hrs and 36 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3

Story

3 out of 5 stars
2

Twenty years after a murder, the convicted man walks free. His supporters claim a victory for justice, but for the murdered man’s friends, life implodes. Old lies resurface, and new questions haunt them. What really happened back then, in the student house they all shared? The house where Ben died? Anna was one of the victim’s housemates, back when they were students. Now she is a vicar, but back then she did media studies. When the case opens up again she finds all her old student films in the loft - films about her housemates - and she watches them with new eyes.

The Raj Quartet: The Jewel in the Crown, The Day of the Scorpion, The Towers of Silence & A Division of the Spoils

As The Jewel in the Crown opens, World War II is at its height, and Gandhi is calling for the British to leave. When Daphne Manners arrives in Mayapore, she meets two men who will change her life: Hari Kumar and Ronald Merrick. She begins to fall for Hari, but Ronald Merrick - the local police superintendent - becomes infatuated with her and seethes with hatred for Hari. The Day of the Scorpion finds Merrick worming his way into the Layton family, and his treatment of Hari Kumar is revealed.

4 out of 5 stars

cut too short, enjoyed story

By
xenia watson
on
24-01-19

Rumpole: On Trial & Other Stories

Four BBC Radio 4 Dramatisations

By:
John Mortimer

Narrated by:
full cast,
Jasmine Hyde,
Julian Rhind-Tutt,
and others

Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Julian Rhind-Tutt takes on the role of Rumpole in this fifth collection of cracking court cases. Starring Julian Rhind-Tutt as Rumpole, Jasmine Hyde as Hilda and Nigel Anthony as Claude Erskine-Brown. A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4.

4 out of 5 stars

Much better

By
pat neville
on
07-01-19

Stone: The Complete Series 5-7

BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Crime Dramas

By:
Danny Brocklehurst

Narrated by:
Craig Cheetham,
Deborah McAndrew,
Hugo Speer,
and others

Length: 13 hrs and 51 mins

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

Manchester detective DCI Stone and his team are faced with 10 complex, morally challenging cases in this collection of hard-hitting radio dramas. As series 5 opens, Stone is still reeling from the mishandled shooting of Callum Gartside, a gunman who had murdered his own family. With his personal life in tatters, he must find the strength to hold it together and do his job.

Based on Nigel Fairs' 'murder mystery serial' that has been running for over 21 years (new episodes performed every month in country houses, steam trains, jailhouses, castles and restaurants throughout the UK), Shilling & Sixpence Investigate takes place in a sometimes quirky, sometimes dark world where nobody is quite whom they seem.

5 out of 5 stars

More please!

By
Amazon Customer
on
28-11-18

The Havana Quartet

Four Full-Cast Crime Dramatisations

By:
Leonardo Padura

Narrated by:
Adjoa Andoh,
Ben Crowe,
Lanre Malaolu,
and others

Length: 3 hrs and 47 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
4

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Leonardo Padura's award-winning Cuban detective series featuring Lieutenant Mario Conde. Havana Blue: it's New Year's Day 1989, and Lieutenant Mario Conde wakes up with another terrible hangover and a case which is close to home. Havana Gold: Lieutenant Conde goes on a trip through his childhood Havana haunts when a young female schoolteacher at his old school is murdered. Havana Red: Conde's fondly held prejudices are tested by this case involving a man found strangled in Havana Woods wearing a beautiful red dress.

That Was Then: Series 1 and 2

A BBC Radio 4 Thriller

By:
Jonathan Myerson

Narrated by:
full cast,
Rosie Cavaliero

Length: 3 hrs and 36 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
4

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3

Story

3 out of 5 stars
2

Twenty years after a murder, the convicted man walks free. His supporters claim a victory for justice, but for the murdered man’s friends, life implodes. Old lies resurface, and new questions haunt them. What really happened back then, in the student house they all shared? The house where Ben died? Anna was one of the victim’s housemates, back when they were students. Now she is a vicar, but back then she did media studies. When the case opens up again she finds all her old student films in the loft - films about her housemates - and she watches them with new eyes.

The Raj Quartet: The Jewel in the Crown, The Day of the Scorpion, The Towers of Silence & A Division of the Spoils

As The Jewel in the Crown opens, World War II is at its height, and Gandhi is calling for the British to leave. When Daphne Manners arrives in Mayapore, she meets two men who will change her life: Hari Kumar and Ronald Merrick. She begins to fall for Hari, but Ronald Merrick - the local police superintendent - becomes infatuated with her and seethes with hatred for Hari. The Day of the Scorpion finds Merrick worming his way into the Layton family, and his treatment of Hari Kumar is revealed.

4 out of 5 stars

cut too short, enjoyed story

By
xenia watson
on
24-01-19

Rumpole: On Trial & Other Stories

Four BBC Radio 4 Dramatisations

By:
John Mortimer

Narrated by:
full cast,
Jasmine Hyde,
Julian Rhind-Tutt,
and others

Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
12

Julian Rhind-Tutt takes on the role of Rumpole in this fifth collection of cracking court cases. Starring Julian Rhind-Tutt as Rumpole, Jasmine Hyde as Hilda and Nigel Anthony as Claude Erskine-Brown. A Catherine Bailey production for BBC Radio 4.

4 out of 5 stars

Much better

By
pat neville
on
07-01-19

The Henry James BBC Radio Drama Collection

10 Full-Cast Dramatisations

By:
Henry James

Narrated by:
Full Cast,
Henry Goodman,
Jodie Comer,
and others

Length: 19 hrs and 30 mins

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

The definitive collection of full-cast BBC radio dramatisations of Henry James’ classic novels - plus a bonus documentary about his life and work. One of the greatest and most influential American novelists, Henry James is loved for his compelling story-telling, vividly realised characters and perceptive exploration of the shifting relationships between Europeans and Americans. But he also possessed extraordinary insights into the secrets of the human heart, as shown in the ten dramas in this collection.

The Conception of Terror: Tales Inspired by M. R. James - Volume 1

An Audible Original Drama

By:
M. R. James,
Stephen Gallagher,
A. K. Benedict,
and others

Narrated by:
Robert Bathurst,
Tom Burke,
Rosa Coduri,
and others

Length: 4 hrs and 13 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
37

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
36

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
36

A collection of four ghostly tales inspired by M. R. James: Casting the Runes, Lost Hearts, The Treasure of Abbott-Thomas and A View from the Hill.

5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant modern ghost stories

By
Chris Halliday
on
10-02-19

The Interrogation: The Complete Series 1-5

By:
Roy Williams

Narrated by:
Alex Lanipekun,
full cast,
Kenneth Cranham

Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins

Original Recording

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
34

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
30

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
30

Kenneth Cranham and Alex Lanipekun star in these 15 hard-hitting crime dramas. Chalk and cheese coppers Max Matthews and Sean Armitage are from different generations and different worlds, but together they make a remarkable team. In this powerful, unconventional police procedural, we join the detective duo in the interview room as they practise their unique style of interrogation in a bid to extract a confession....

5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic

By
Mr. Mark Hayden
on
26-09-18

The Sensitive

Eleven BBC Radio 4 Crime Dramas

By:
Alastair Jessiman

Narrated by:
full cast,
Jimmy Chisholm,
Julie Duncanson,
and others

Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
35

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
30

Story

4 out of 5 stars
30

The complete series of off-beat thrillers about psychic detective Thomas Soutar, who uses his skills in police investigations. Set in Glasgow and featuring fantastic full casts, these unique police dramas star Robin Laing as Thomas Soutar.

4 out of 5 stars

Never realised how many there were!

By
B.W.
on
22-09-18

The Daniel Defoe BBC Radio Drama Collection

Robinson Crusoe, Moll Flanders & A Journal of the Plague Year

By:
Daniel Defoe,
Philip Palmer

Narrated by:
full cast,
Jessica Hynes,
Ben Miles,
and others

Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins

Original Recording

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
2

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
2

Story

5 out of 5 stars
2

Three lively retellings of Daniel Defoe’s classic novels, plus two bonus programmes about his extraordinary life and far-reaching influence. Robinson Crusoe and His Farther Adventures:An imaginative blend of the famous castaway tale and its lesser-known sequel, this thrilling drama sees Crusoe setting sail for the far north. Facing danger in the Siberian wastes, he keeps terror at bay by telling his companions campfire tales of his many adventures on his beloved island. Starring Tim McInnerney as Crusoe.

High Table, Lower Orders: The Complete Series 1 and 2

The BBC Radio 4 Comedy Drama

By:
Mark Tavener

Narrated by:
Geoffrey Palmer,
Samuel West,
Rebecca Front,
and others

Length: 5 hrs and 34 mins

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

When prominent don and celebrity TV historian Peter Devanti dies after dining at High Table, his colleague Gilbert suspects foul play and invites his former student Simon Harrison, a disillusioned health and safety officer, to investigate. Meanwhile, Simon’s former girlfriend Zoe, a freelance journalist, arrives to write an article about Devanti’s death, reopening old wounds for Simon.

Charles Paris: Star Trap

A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisation

By:
Simon Brett

Narrated by:
full cast,
Bill Nighy

Length: 2 hrs

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

When Charles Paris’ agent rings with the news that he has a part for him in a new musical, Charles is delighted - and somewhat amazed, as he can neither sing nor dance. But Maurice has an ulterior motive: as one of the show’s backers, he wants Charles to play detective and investigate a series of accidents that have dogged the production. The pianist has been shot in the hand and another cast member fell downstairs - or was he pushed? Anxious about their investment and their star, Chris Watt, the ‘angels’ are keen to ensure that nothing else goes wrong.

Stone: The Complete Series 1-4

By:
Danny Brocklehurst

Narrated by:
Craig Cheetham,
Deborah McAndrew,
full cast,
and others

Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins

Original Recording

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
169

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
140

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
140

Seventeen stories from the gritty crime series created by Danny Brocklehurst, starring Hugo Speer as Manchester detective John Stone. This collection brings together Series 1 to 4 of this intelligent detective drama, tackling morally ambiguous, complex and challenging subjects. DCI Stone and his team investigate a series of brutal murders and missing person cases, among other grisly crimes. Starring Hugo Speer as DCI John Stone, Craig Cheetham as DI Mike Tanner and Deborah McAndrew as DS Sue Kelly.

It’s been two years since Dinah Collins left the NYPD in disgrace, forced out for digging too deeply into the sudden disappearance of a fellow cop - her brother, Danny. Now, scraping by as a PI, Dinah is hired to find a young woman, Lucy Fisher, who vanished on Halloween, last seen wearing a creepy costume. As she pursues a deadly trail of clues, Dinah will find she’s faced with a terrible choice: If she can only save one person, Danny or Lucy, who will it be?

4 out of 5 stars

Bouvard Stars In New York PI Thriller!

By
Simon
on
10-01-19

Suspense Collection 2

By:
Black Eye Entertainment

Narrated by:
full cast

Length: 5 hrs and 54 mins

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

Conceived as a potential radio vehicle for Alfred Hitchcock to direct, Suspense was a radio series of epic proportion. It aired on CBS from 1942 to 1962 and is considered by many to be the best mystery/drama series of the Golden Age. Known as “Radio's Outstanding Theater of Thrills”, it focused on suspenseful stories starring the biggest names in Hollywood. Running more than 20 years, Suspense aired nearly 1,000 radio broadcasts. It made the transition to television in 1949, but it was much better suited for radio where the “theatre of the mind” could run free.

Punt PI: Series 6-10

The BBC Radio 4 Comedy Series

By:
Steve Punt

Narrated by:
Steve Punt

Length: 8 hrs and 16 mins

Original Recording

Overall

0 out of 5 stars
0

Performance

0 out of 5 stars
0

Story

0 out of 5 stars
0

The BBC Radio 4 show where Steve Punt turns private investigator, examining little mysteries that perplex, amuse and beguile. His methods may be unconventional, but he gets the job done in this collection of all 18 epsiodes from series 6-10 of Punt PI.

The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency: BBC Radio Casebook Vol. 4

Eight BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations

By:
Alexander McCall Smith

Narrated by:
full cast,
Nadine Marshall,
Claire Benedict

Length: 5 hrs and 49 mins

Original Recording

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
8

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
7

Story

5 out of 5 stars
7

Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier - and only - lady detective, is back with another batch of unusual cases. In these eight episodes, she receives a visit from a very important person; helps out Mma Potokwani, who has had bad news at the Orphan Farm; looks into who is orchestrating a campaign against Mma Soleti; and welcomes a new arrival - while righting an old wrong. Plus, Mr JLB Matekoni’s apprentice gets into trouble; Mma Makutsi is hiding a secret; and Mma Ramotswe tries to come to terms with one of the trickiest situations she has ever faced: taking a holiday.

Nobody gets out alive. Classic Rendell.

Settle back and enjoy vintage Rendell.
A great collection from Ruth with all the aspects we have come to love.
Tight, claustrophobic stories that leave none of the characters unscathed.
These shortened versions are perfect to reacquaint yourself with her earlier work.